Doomed plane photographed before fatal crash

In 1948, the nation’s leading airline, Australian National Airways, suffered four major accidents in as many months. First, the Lutana vanished flying from Brisbane to Sydney in a thunderstorm. Its wreckage and 13 deceased occupants were later found. Then the Kanana, flying Melbourne to Sydney, suffered a fiery malfunction mid-flight. Those on board escaped harm after an emergency landing. Servicing the same route in misty conditions, the Kurana (pictured) crash-landed on the southern slopes of Mt Macedon. Passengers evacuated the aircraft as it caught on fire. The captain and first officer were pulled from the crushed nose, but were fatally injured. Ending the airline’s string of bad luck, the Kyilla was damaged beyond repair after a crash-landing in total darkness. (State Library of New South Wales/Flickr)